The Square Foot

905 area condo sales drive new home market up 105 per cent in August

Sales of new high-rise condominium suites more than doubled in August 2011 versus August of last year thanks to incredible gains in the 905 area, particularly Oakville, Markham and Vaughan, the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) revealed.

According to RealNet Canada Inc., BILD's official source of new home market intelligence, total new home sales rose 77 per cent in August, aided by a 105 per cent increase in sales of high-rise condo suites, abetted by a healthy 48 per cent increase in sales of low-rise (single-detached, semi-detached and townhomes) product.

It was the hottest August ever recorded for new high rise sales, but more significantly, it was the first time ever that there were more condos sold outside the City of Toronto than inside the City.

"Whereas the long-term ratio is 75/25, 416/905, that ratio was 41/59, 416/905 during the month of August as new project openings in Oakville, Markham and Vaughan stole the City of Toronto's thunder," said BILD President and CEO Stephen Dupuis.

Dupuis noted that while the 905 high-rise burst was partly anomalous, infrastructure investment and government policy bias towards intensified development is driving a long-term shift in the market towards the magical 40 per cent intensification target.

Through August, total new home sales stand at 30,181 units. Total sales are up 27 per cent year/year, while prices are up 10.5 per cent for low-rise and 7.8 per cent for high-rise homes.

With more than 1,350 members, BILD, formed through the merger of the Greater Toronto Home Builders' Association and Urban Development Institute/Ontario, is the voice of the land development, home building and professional renovation industry in the Greater Toronto Area. BILD is proudly affiliated with the Ontario and Canadian Home Builders' Associations.